The AAS Committee on the Status of Women in Astronomy maintains this blog to disseminate information relevant to astronomers who identify as women. If you have an idea for a blog post or topic, please submit to wia-blog at lists.aas.org.
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Friday, April 19, 2019

AASWOMEN Newsletter for April 19, 2019

[AAS has migrated their email system to Microsoft Exchange. Therefore, it is no longer possible to subscribe or unsubscribe to the AASWomen newsletter by means of Google Groups. Current subscribers will continue to receive their newsletter issues through the existing email listserv until their subscriptions are ported to the new system. No action on their part is needed. Please follow us on social media for updates. Twitter @AAS_Women Facebook https://bit.ly/2PkU9of]

Back to top.2. The Scientist Who Cooks Up the Skies of Faraway WorldsFrom: John Mather [johncm12_at_gmail.com]

By Shannon Hall

“In 2004, Sarah Hörst found herself at a crossroads. She was about to finish her bachelor’s degree at the California Institute of Technology and had decided to take a break from school. Not only did she feel burned out, she couldn’t decide whether she wanted to pursue a career studying Earth’s own climate or the mysteries surrounding distant planets. She knew that climate change was important, but she longed to study alien worlds. Today she describes it as a battle between her head and her heart.”

Here's an example of how another profession tried to deal with the presence of a sexual harasser and his victims at a conference. It's a good starting point for asking about how meetings in astronomy have handled or could handle such a situation.

Fernando Maestre, a member of the Departamento de Biología y Geología at Universidad Rey Juan Carlos in Spain, has published an editorial that lists "10 simple rules to make the working environment of research labs more nurturing, collaborative, and people-centered."

" [A] project in the remote Kimberley area of northwestern Australia provides hard evidence that collaborating with Indigenous rangers can change the outcome of science from failure to success. ... the overall success of our project increased as a result of our multicultural team."

Back to top.7. Extraordinary Females Who Had The World’s “Firsts” In SciencesFrom: Alessandra Aloisi [aloisi_at_stsci.edu]

By Jesse Prout

“The history of science can sometimes read like a somewhat watered down story of old bearded white men with oversized glasses. But, there have been some incredible discoveries in the sciences from women who have been paradigm shifters in helping us understand the world around us.

From women figuring out the ins and outs of nuclear fission to breaking the speed barrier, you’re probably going to be surprised to see just how many women have contributed to the science community despite their lack of representation.”

Back to top.8. It matters who we champion in scienceFrom: Alessandra Aloisi [aloisi_at_stsci.edu]

By Maryam Zaringhalam and Jess Wade

“But what happens to the scientists who don’t catch fire online? The world knows about Bouman because social media needed a hero to attribute this historic achievement. But many equally impressive women stay under the radar and are subsequently erased from the history books.

The reasons for this range from systematic bias in authorship to grant allocation and publishing to the decisions of journalists on whose stories they tell. Over the past few years, we’ve taken the initiative to write hundreds of Wikipedia entries with the goal of giving forgotten scientists — especially women — the recognition they deserve for their work.”

Back to top.9. Male scientists are often cast as lone geniuses. Here’s what happened when a woman was.From: JoEllen McBride [joellen.mcbride_at_gmail.com]

This article tries to sum up key takeaways from the EHT image and the reaction to Dr. Bouman's Eureka! moment.

"But there are a few key takeaways. One is that while the “lone genius” narrative can be tantalizing, it’s almost never true, especially in science. Another is that women often don’t feel welcome in scientific fields — and the reaction to Bouman’s picture reveals hostility many women scientists face all the time. Lastly, to combat this hostility, we need to see more images of women thriving in science."

"Increasing evidence shows that the “work-life balance” phrasing puts the blame on working mothers; a “balance” suggests that moms’ stress is a result of our own shortcomings and mismanaged commitments. Work-family justice shifts the onus of finding harmony between career and home life from the individual to society. It raises the question, why are individual mothers responsible to make it work, to figure it out for themselves? Work-family justice stresses that the conflict between work and family is not an inevitable feature of contemporary science careers, and it’s not the fault of women or parents."

Back to top.11. Want black women students to stay in STEM? Help them find role models who look like themFrom: JoEllen McBride [joellen.mcbride_at_gmail.com]

By Indiana University

"Representation matters for Black women college students when it comes to belonging in rigorous science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) programs, according to a new study. Having role models who share their racial identity is vital to signaling a sense of belonging for women of color college students."

Back to top.14. ‘I Want What My Male Colleague Has, and That Will Cost a Few Million Dollars’From: JoEllen McBride [joellen.mcbride_at_gmail.com]

By Mallory Pickett

"Northern San Diego County is a scientific mecca, home to some of the world’s leading biotech companies, renowned research institutions and a world-class university. But the Salk Institute for Biological Research, perched on a cliff above the Pacific Ocean in La Jolla, is distinguished even among its neighbors.

By 2017, the biochemist Beverly Emerson had worked in this utopia for 31 years. She was, at the time, onto an exciting idea — a novel approach to understanding tumor growth — but her 66th birthday was coming up, and with it her contract with Salk would expire. To renew it, the Institute required that she have enough grant money to cover half her salary. She didn’t."

Back to top.15. 80 nations set quotas for female leaders. Should the U.S. be next?From: Maria Patterson [maria.t.patterson_at_gmail.com]

By Heather Long

“Alexander De Croo is not a partner at BCG, a top global consulting firm. His wife is. Yet when he accompanies her to big consulting events, at least one person typically approaches the couple and asks De Croo which division he heads at the company. They assume his wife is there as a significant other.

Even in 2019, De Croo says, the bias remains that men are leaders and women are not.”

Back to top.16. Doctoral Students Charge Insufficient Support for Cultural Affinity Groups in ProposalFrom: JoEllen McBride [joellen.mcbride_at_gmail.com]

By Shera S. Avi-Yonah and Luke A. Williams

"Leaders of several Graduate School of Arts and Sciences student groups submitted a proposal to administrators in December calling for major changes to the way GSAS and Dudley House support affinity groups.

Graduate students from Harvard Graduate Women in Science and Engineering, the W.E.B. Du Bois Graduate Society, the Harvard GSAS Latinx Student Association, and the Harvard LGBTQ@GSAS Association signed the proposal last semester."

Back to top.17. Job OpportunitiesFor those interested in increasing excellence and diversity in theirorganizations, a list of resources and advice is here:https://cswa.aas.org/diversity.html#howtoincrease